Saturday, June 11, 2011

Mickie Laree James (born August 31, 1979), better known simply as Mickie James, is an American professional wrestler and singer of mixed Native American-Caucasian descent, currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA), where she is the current TNA Women's Knockout Champion. She is also known for her time in World Wrestling Entertainment. James began her professional wrestling career in 1999 as a valet on the independent circuit, where she was known under the name Alexis Laree. She trained in several camps to improve her wrestling abilities before working for Total Nonstop Action Wrestling in June 2002, where she gained national attention. After only a few appearances, she joined a stable called The Gathering and was written into angles with the group. She is also the only woman to be involved in Clockwork Orange House of Fun matches.

James appeared in WWE in October 2005 and was placed in a storyline with Trish Stratus, in which James' gimmick was that of Stratus' biggest fan turned obsessed stalker, an angle which lasted almost a year. She received a push, and she won her first WWE Women's Championship at WrestleMania 22, a title she has held a total of five times. James also won her first Divas Championship at Night of Champions in 2009 to become the second Diva to hold both the Women's and Divas titles. She, however, was released from the company on April 22, 2010, after which she returned to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where she became the first woman to have won the WWE Womens, WWE Divas, and TNA Knockout championships, and is a seven-time champion overall.